HUNTSVILLE, Alabama - Here are some numbers for you: In its first year, the Huntsville Museum of Art's ice rink in Big Spring International Park is expected to have drawn more than 10,000 skaters, netted between $110,000 and $120,000 and was the site of two marriage proposals. The Skating in the Park ice rink, which is on the west lawn of the museum, officially closes Jan. 6 at 8 p.m.

"The response has been tremendous," Dane Block, president of the museum's Foundation Board, said. "The people of Huntsville have really come out and had a great time." Block, who wanted to see an outdoor ice rink in Huntsville for years, said he spoke with people from all over North Alabama who came to skate at the rink.

"My wife and I would often go down and sit and watch," Block said. "We loved seeing toddlers pushing the ice scooters (big plastic walkers novice skaters could use to steady themselves), kids skating , teenagers on dates holding hands skating, kids back from college, young adults, parents and grandparents skating," he said. "There were even two marriage proposals on the ice. It just makes you happy to watch all the smiles."

The rink opened on Nov. 21, and several weeks of unseasonably warm weather followed, but that didn't stop skaters' enthusiasm, Block said. "People enjoyed skating in warm weather and well as in the cold weather," he said. "The few days we had rain, people still skated unless it poured."

While the ice was often full of skaters, the park was packed with people as well, many hanging out on the side of the rink to watch the skaters. "I would say there were at least two times as many spectators as ice skaters, sometimes more," Block said. Many of those people also toured the almost 170 decorated Christmas trees that made up the Downtown 47's Tinsel Trail, which lined the sidewalk behind the rink. More than 30,000 visited the trail this year, said Ashley Dinges, Tinsel Trail 2012 chairwoman.

The Foundation Board, which is the fundraising arm of the museum, undertook the effort to get sponsors on board for the first year endeavor, with backers footing the $103,000 it took for Magic Ice USA to erect the ice rink and manage it for the six weeks it will be up. The money raised, which is unofficial and not final until all expenses are covered, will go the museum's general fund.

"This certainly ranks up at the top of the most successful fundraisers we've done," said Stephanie Kelley, the museum's communications manager.

Christopher J. Madkour, executive director of the museum, said he was "ecstatic about the ice rink's success and the positive community response to it." He also said the sponsors have been "thrilled with the rink's success," and many have indicated they'll be back to sponsor the rink again next year. "We feel very strongly at this point that Skating in the Park will be back in November 2013," Madkour said.

The museum started out with a 50-by-70-foot rink and will consider getting a bigger one next year. "We started out with a small rink to see how it would be received and it was a success, so that will play a role in the size we decide to do next year," Block said. He also said he would like to see the rink become the museum's special holiday project, such as the Huntsville Botanical Garden's "Galaxy of Lights" or Alabama Constitution Village's "Santa's Village."

"People just had too much fun, and people came back multiple times," Block said. "It was a safe gathering place for people to have fun."